NCJ Number
140783
Journal
Canadian Police College Journal Volume: 16 Issue: 4 Dated: (1992) Pages: 233-239
Date Published
1992
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This discussion of how to develop effective leadership today includes a focus on the police who by their attitude can serve to improve community standards.
Abstract
The police experience a particularly difficult time in adjusting to the new demands for leadership as they traditionally have been regarded as authority figures empowered to use force. Frequently, it is a problem for the police to perform their job without recourse to authority, yet the exercise of raw power actually limits the real authority of the police figure. Preferable and a step forward in exerting police leadership is the development of community policing which allows the same officers to get to know the same people in the same areas on a daily basis and to establish relationships. It always will be necessary to deal with the criminal element in society, but society's attitude, as translated into the daily interactions of its citizens, can serve to move the community to a higher level of respect and justice. The police need to uphold this justice as they exert their leadership role in the community.